ChemGenex completes A$21M financing

Australia's ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals has completed an A$10.5 million ($8.6 million) capital raising achieved by a non-renounceable rights issue for 16,891,916 new shares and associated options.

The successful rights issue follows the raising of A$10.5 million by placement to institutional investors in February, making the combined capital raising A$21 million and putting ChemGenex in a strong position to fund the completion of the development program for its lead agent, Ceflatonin (homohharringtonine), which is currently in Phase II/III clinical trials for chronic myeloid leukemia patients with the T315I mutation who have failed with Novartis' Gleevec (imatinib mesylate). The T315I Bcr-Abl mutation renders treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors ineffective, and is associated with resistance to Gleevec and Sprycel (dasatinib) from Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Completion of the rights issue has increased the shareholdings of the two recent significant shareholders in the company. Alta Partners, based in San Francisco, USA, and GBS Venture Partners, based in Melbourne, Australia. Participation in the rights issue has raised Alta Partners' shareholding in ChemGenex to 19.9%, and GBS Venture Partners' to 8.9% of the total 185,811,079 shares in the company.